In the Torah portion we read about the Challah,
the bread of Shabbat. What is the significance of the intertwining
of the bread to make it Challah?

Dear Alison & Roi Levine Garcia,

I have heard several reasons for braiding Challot
for Shabbat. The three braids are symbolic of the commands to
observe Shabbat that appear in the Ten Commandnments One braid
represents the word "Zachor" - "Remember."
A second braid represents the word "Shamor"
- "Guard." The third braid is for "b'Dibbur
Echad" - that these commands of "Remember"
and "Guard" were said by G-d simultaneously and as one
unit.

Another reason is that Shabbat signifies and reminds
us of three different concepts: The Creation of the World, the
Exodus from Egypt and the Messianic Era. This is also the reason
for three distinct separate Amidot - Silent Prayers - on
Shabbat, as opposed to the weekday Amidah which is of identical
wording three times a day (the theme of the fourth prayer of Shabbat
- Mussaf ("additional") is said for the additional
Temple sacrifice for Shabbat, and also applies on Festivals.)
This idea also provides an understanding for the three meals
eaten on Shabbat.

By the way, the "Challah" mentioned in the Torah is not
referring to the Challah that we eat on Shabbat and Yom
Tov. (See Ask the Rabbi Issue #165 for a critique of this
comment.) It refers to the command to separate a small
amount of the dough that one kneads when baking bread.
In Temple times this portion of dough (called "Challah"
by the Torah) was given to the Kohanim, the priestly tribe,
who were responsible for the Temple service. Today there is a
rabbinical command to separate "Challah" from
the dough and burn it, since in order to eat it there is a requirement
for the Kohanim and the Challah to be ritually pure
- a state that does not presently exist.

Could you please give a simple explanation with
examples, of the levels of textual interpretation, referred to
as PARDES. ( Pshat, Remez, Drush, Sod.)

Dear Brian Levitan,

Let's take the first verse of the Torah as our example:

1. Pshat - simplest meaning, based on the
text and context. Rashi explains that pshat of the verse
as follows: "In the beginning of God's creation of the
heaven and the earth, the earth was desolate and void."
This is based on a linguistic analysis of the word "Bereshit,"
which does not mean "In the beginning", but "In
the beginning of..."

2. Remez - "hint." The Gaon of
Vilna taught that all commands of the Torah are hinted at in the
first word of the Torah. For instance, Pidyon Haben -
redemption of the first-born - is alluded to by an acronym of
the letters of Bereshit, which spell "ben rishon
acharei shloshim yom tifdeh" - the first son you shall
redeem after thirty days.

3. Drush - contextual and non-contextual,
moral and philosophical explanations. Rashi states that there
is a philosophical idea alluded to in the word "Bereshit."
The world was created for the sake of Torah which is called "reshit,"
and for the Jewish people who are also referred to as "reshit."
Both are "firsts" in terms of their centrality in the
purpose of Creation.

4. Sod - hidden or secret meaning. Mishna:
"The world was created with ten statements." Gemara:
"But when you count them there are only nine statements!
Bereshit (In the beginning) is also a statement."
The statement of "Bereshit" was the creation
of time, which is a dimension of the physical world. One of the
names of G-d is "Hamakom" - "The Place"
- as the Midrash explains that "He is the place of the world,
the world is not His place." This concept is based on the
idea that the physical world would not exist if not for G-d willing
it to exist at every moment. Therefore G-d is the "Place"
of the world, meaning the framework of reality in which everything
exists, and He provides the possibility of existence to all of
Creation. The dimension of Time and the laws of nature were created
during the six days of Creation. The Sforno, The Gaon of Vilna,
the Maharal, and Maimonides, all basing themselves on the Talmud,
state that the hidden meaning of the word "In the Beginning"
- Bereshit - is the creation of what we today call "the
space-time continuum."

We all know that you must nullify chametz
prior to Pesach at a time when it is still permissible to derive
benefit from it, because when the chametz becomes totally
prohibited, the Torah withdraws a person's ownership of it and
the person can no longer nullify it.

Under what circumstances would a person be able to
make an effective statement of nullification during Pesach,
which will enable him to avoid transgressing the strict prohibition
on owning chametz?